atone

C2+ Topic:Ethics & Social Judgment

US /əˈtoʊn/ UK /əˈtəʊn/ See IPA manual

verb

Meanings

1

verb
to make amends or reparation for a wrong

He spent years trying to atone for the harm he had caused.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to make amends or... expiate redeem compensate amend propitiate repent

Word family

Derived forms atonementatoneratonable

Related forms one atonement

Etymology

A native formation from the phrase at one ('in harmony, reconciled'), as in to set 'at one'; originally meaning to reconcile, later to make amends. From Old English æt ('at') + ān ('one').

æt ān Old English

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Ethics & Social Judgment

# atone

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** əˈtoʊn
**IPA (UK):** əˈtəʊn

## Meanings
1. to make amends or reparation for a wrong

## Examples
- He spent years trying to atone for the harm he had caused.

## Synonyms
- expiate
- redeem
- compensate
- amend
- propitiate
- repent

## Derived Forms
- atonement
- atoner
- atonable

## Related Forms
- one
- atonement

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: æt ān

## Etymology
A native formation from the phrase at one ('in harmony, reconciled'), as in to set 'at one'; originally meaning to reconcile, later to make amends. From Old English æt ('at') + ān ('one').

## AI Etymology
Atone is a verb meaning "to make amends or reparation for a wrong". Historically, it is a native formation from the phrase at one ('in harmony, reconciled'), as in to set 'at one'; originally meaning to reconcile, later to make amends. From Old English æt ('at') + ān ('one'). The visible construction is part of the etymology: atone is not just an unanalyzed simple word. The semantic history matters here: the earlier use is the starting point, and the modern sense, "to make amends or reparation for a wrong", is the later or specialized English value. The historical chain is anchored in Old English æt ān. Close English family members include atonement, atoner, atonable, and one.

## Topics
- Ethics & Social Judgment

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atone

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